It seems that South Carolina voters are all too ready to forgive the "family values conservative" who misused public funds, secretly left the country and lied to his entire staff about his whereabouts and deceived his wife about his sexual affairs with his South American mistress.

F. Scott Fitzgerald famously uttered "there are no second acts in American lives" but bless his heart, the besotted scribe seems blissfully unaware of the loophole large enough to taxi a C- 130 through that exists for American politicians.

Sanford's own experience, you would think, would make him a natural ally of anyone whose unconventional love story has been the object of public scrutiny. Yet, when it comes to gays and lesbians, the former governor's allegiance lies with the Republican right wing.

This week, Lance Armstrong finally came clean, telling Oprah: "I'm here to say 'sorry.'" Whole Foods CEO John Mackey offered regrets for comparing Obamacare to "fascism." And former South Carolina governor Mark Sanford announced a bid for Congress, saying: "We all hope for redemption." But before there is redemption, there must be contrition -- something sorely missing from the prosecutors of Aaron Swartz who, just days after Swartz's suicide, defended their actions as "appropriate." Also contrition-free: the NRA, whose inaccurate ad featuring the president's daughters was blasted as "reprehensible" by Gov. Chris Christie, among many others. And there was no contrition from House Republicans, who softened their stance on the debt ceiling while reserving the right to hold the economy hostage. Perhaps we do a hostage swap with them -- we get the economy back, they get Manti Te'o's girlfriend.